The purpose of this study is to examine how gender stereotypes are portrayed and how stereotypes are being maintained through Swedish reality tv shows. The study aims to test the common-sense hypothesis that the Swedish Public Service is more attentive to equality and inclusiveness than commercial production companies, including the equal representation of genders. The first research question aims to investigate if and how stereotypes are being preserved in the programs. The second research question looks into what types of audiovisual means the reality shows use to portray men and women. The study has compared two Swedish reality shows by the names of Vi eller Aldrig (Public Service) and True Love Sverige (commercial company) with a theoretical basis in framing and gender theory and applying a quantitative and qualitative method. Earlier research has shown that there are significant differences between the framing of men and women in tv commercials (Matthes & Prieler, 2020), and also in other reality tv shows such as Love Island UK where it is proven that sexist and heteronormative perspectives are maintained throughout the show (Denby, 2021). The quantitative results of this study showed that there are differences regarding the framing of the genders between the two shows, where Vi eller Aldrig was less equal than True Love Sverige. The male participants were given significantly more space than the female participants in Vi eller Aldrig, while True Love Sverige was more equal. It also showed that stereotypes were maintained in both shows through the shows’ production strategies and through the representation of stereotypical character types. The qualitative results compared scenes from each program and concluded that the principal audiovisual means used were music, editing, set design and camerawork. The results are of significance because they present evidence that these two reality shows contribute to upholding patriarchal structures by making men the focal points, main characters of the shows’ and also by continuing to portray men and women from stereotypical roles, women as stereotypically hysterical and men as stereotypically cool and poised.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:lnu-118882 |
| Date | January 2023 |
| Creators | Vallin, Maja, Wikenholm, Sofie |
| Publisher | Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för medier och journalistik (MJ) |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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